Double Meaning
by Only Sarah
Summary: "I'm fine." She says, but that's not the truth. Because the word 'fine' can have many meanings, she's realized. Chase and Zoey.


**Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Zoey 101. If I did, why would I be on fanfiction?**

* * *

"I'm fine, dude, I swear. I just want to be alone." He ran a hand through his hair and stared down at his converse in defeat. He had lost her, he knew that for certain. Why had he been so stupid? His utter arrogance and male instinct had caused him to push away his best friend, and the girl he loved. She moved away to England, and he was stuck at PCA to suffer the consequences.

"You don't look fine." Michael said, patting him on the back once, and giving him a look that said that he saw right through him.

He had tried to convince them, his friends, that he didn't miss Zoey. He even had tried to convince himself, by replacing her with another girl, Gretchen, who could have been related to her, they looked so similar. But Gretchen didn't have Zoey's bright eyes or her warm smile, didn't laugh out loud at his jokes or playfully punch him in the arm just when she felt like it. She wasn't Zoey.

"I know. I'm not."

Michael sat down next to him on the sofa. "It's okay that you miss her. I'm just glad you finally admitted that you love her."

Chase shook his head. "What's the use, though? She isn't coming back. She'll never know."

"Then TELL her."

"That's not exactly something I can just say over webcam. Could you imagine the conversation?"

Michael laughed. "I guess."

Little did he know that she already knew, had already overheard over that very webcam.

Within two weeks, he had packed his bags and boarded that airplane. He was going to tell her, whether she liked it or not. He had to.

* * *

"I'm fine."

Carol Brooks raised her eyebrow at her daughter. "Zoey Brooks, do not lie to me. What is going on?"

Zoey sighed. Her mom knew her too well, she had forgotten. Sometimes she really missed being closer to her parents. Her new boarding school was less than thirty minutes from where her parents were living, close enough to go home on weekends. PCA was several hours away so she rarely went home.

"Maybe I'm just finding it hard to adjust to the new school."

Her mother rolled her eyes. "We both know that's not true. You settled into PCA before you even set foot onto the campus. Now tell me the truth."

Zoey took a deep breath, before revealing everything to her mother, beginning with meeting Chase on her first day of school, to him telling her to leave, to overhearing him on the webcam.

Her mother stayed quiet for a moment before smiling. "This is that boy that you're always talking about?"

She blushed. "Well, yeah."

"Do you love him back?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, mom. He's my best friend, and I was mad at him for telling me to leave, but now I understand. And he didn't realize that this was going to be a permanent change."

"I could always tell that you felt something towards him." Her mom smiled at her. "Just do what your heart is telling you to do."

Zoey groaned. "I need to talk to him, but I don't know what to say. I don't even know what to think. He's my best friend, so I think it might be weird to, like, date him. But on the other hand, I might love him too. He's always been special to me."

Carol sighed. "Well, I'll call PCA. I guess you're transferring back."

"What? Mom, no, it's okay."

"You belong there, not here. I can see it in your eyes. Don't worry about us."

Before she could protest, or even comprehend what was happening, Zoey was on a plane destined for southern California. She was sad to leave her parents, but her mom was right. She belonged at PCA, and something, or someone, she wasn't sure which, was dragging her back.

* * *

"It's fine. I'm fine."

"I'm really sorry, Emma."

She wiped the tear that had fallen off of her face and smiled. "I knew Zoey when she went here. She's really lucky to have you."

Chase shrugged. When Michael had video chatted him just four weeks before with the news ("I'm sorry man, but Zoey's dating someone right now") he broke down. But then he built himself back up. Zoey had emailed him twice, once right after their 'date' and once again a few days after the news, but he couldn't bring himself to reply to the second one. Not yet, anyways. He believed that she _did _love him. He just wasn't sure if she was _in _love with him.

They had agreed to date other people. He wasn't mad, not at all. He was crushed, but somewhere deep inside of him, he got through it. And when Emma Taylor, a girl with short, curly brown hair and blue eyes asked him out, he said yes. He genuinely liked her, and they had even kissed. But, as usual, it wasn't right. He kept searching for Zoey's traits in her, and he couldn't keep leading her on.

"I really hope we can still be friends," He said to her.

She smiled, nodding. "Of course. I'm just not your girl. I'll be fine."

He pulled her in for a hug, before she stood up and left his dorm room.

He took out his laptop, noticing an email notification. He opened it up, and saw the name "Zoey Brooks" in the 'from' column, and his heart skipped. Holding his breath, he opened it.

_Hey Fuzzyhead,_

_I hope it's still okay for me to call you that. And if it isn't, I don't care._

_I know you saw my last email and I KNOW you read it, but I don't blame you for not answering. I'm really sorry, Chase. I should have told you over video chat or the phone, but Michael beat me to it and I was afraid to tell you myself._

_Have you ever gotten into a relationship, thinking it's a good idea, and then regretting it after about three days? Because that's me._

_James is sweet and everything, but it's not what I was expecting. Everyone thinks he's perfect, but I can't see him that way. And I just figured out why. I keep expecting YOU when I walk into your (well, his) dorm. And when we're together, I want you to be there with me, not him. It's always you. I definitely do not love James, and I don't think I ever could._

_I came back to PCA because I really wasn't sure about my feelings towards you. I need to SEE you, face to face. I know that I love you, and I already told you that, but I thought you should hear it (well….read it) again. But I miss you, I miss you like crazy._

_But yeah, I just had to get that off of my chest. If you don't answer me, that's okay, but I'll probably pay someone to throw grapes at you, since I can't do it myself ;)_

_Email me back if you want to video chat sometime soon. We haven't talked in six weeks and I need to hear your voice again. _

_Love, _

_Zoey_

Chase smiled ear to ear as he read the last half of the email over and over again. It was ironic, really, how he had just broken up with Emma, and Zoey was thinking about him. He sighed and closed his laptop, before opening it back up to type his response.

* * *

"I'm fine!" Zoey nearly shouted at her hovering roommates.

"Zoey, we're not stupid. Something's wrong." Quinn said, sitting down on the sofa.

"Yeah." Lola added in. "Prom is in two weeks. You have been all pouty for the last three weeks already. You even broke up with James last night. What's going on?"

"I don't know. I wish I did." She said. "It didn't feel right being with James, and I don't love him, but breaking up with him doesn't feel any better."

"I wish we could help." Lola answered, giving her a hug.

"Thanks, guys." Zoey smiled, sadly. "I kind of just want to be alone."

"That's okay." Quinn stood up and walked out, taking Lola with her. "We'll go grab lunch."

The door closed and Zoey took out her own laptop, and opened up her last email from Chase. It was sent over a month and a half before, and she would have liked to answer, but with James constantly hovering over her, she felt wrong.

She always read it, though, and she smiled every time.

_It will never be okay to call me Fuzzyhead, but I'll still take that over Curly Sue. I guess I'll just have to live with it._

_I'm sorry that I didn't get back to you on your last message. I was finding it quite hard to adjust to Covington, and I was kind of surprised that you emailed me instead of calling, but I'm not mad. I never was mad. You can date whoever you want, and I won't argue. I actually dated a girl here for about a month, and she was nice, but there wasn't much of a connection between us._

_Relationship you wish you hadn't gotten into? Pfft, I've NEVER been in THAT situation (cough*Rebecca*cough)._

_Please don't feel that way because you think I'll be mad, or you'll hurt my feelings or something. You're also my best friend (just don't tell Michael) and I want you to be happy, with whoever that might be. If you're unhappy with him, then I think you should already know what to do. But if he does make you happy, then don't worry about me. _

_I get what you're saying about not knowing your feelings towards me. I should have told you a while ago, because overhearing me say it over webcam was probably a bit of a shock. I know I'm in love with you. I am, and I tried to change that and it didn't work. And if you don't feel the same, that's okay. I just want you to be my friend, no matter what happens. _

_Hire someone to throw grapes at me? Harsh ;) _

_When I get back, we're finishing that grape war, and you're going down, Brooks._

_By the way, the semester here ends about a month before you guys finish school, so I'm hoping to come back for the end of the school year at PCA. I'll let you know. And yes, I would like to video chat soon. We have midterms coming up, but any time after that would be great._

_Love, Chase_

She had never taken him up on the video chat offer because there was too much going on inside her head, and she didn't want to let him in. She knew that he would see right through her. But in a spur of the moment decision, she called him.

She tried calling him for five minutes, before ending the call, and closing her laptop.

He didn't answer. But she was fine, she told herself. She'd be fine.

* * *

"You okay back there, bud? You look like you just saw a ghost or something." The cab driver called back at him.

"I'm fine." He said back, but his hands were shaking. He was going to surprise her that day. He saw her number show up on his 'missed calls' from earlier that day, after he had landed in the US, but he didn't call her back because he was nervous.

He stayed silent for the rest of the ride, before pulling into the PCA parking lot and unloading his bags. It was around lunchtime at PCA, and the campus was packed with the usual Saturday afternoon activities. Looking around, he immediately felt at home.

His rooming arrangements had been done over the phone, as he still had the key to his old dorm. As it was the end of the semester, and no rooms were available, the single bed in 148 Maxwell Hall was to be replaced with a bunk for the remainder of the year.

He dropped off his bags in the dorm room, empty for what felt like the first time in his five years at PCA, changed his clothing, and walked straight to her room.

"It's just Zoey. You'll be fine. Things will be fine. If she rejects you, pretend you're fine." He told himself as he approached Fulton Hall.

But he was beyond fine, as she ran into his arms and hugged him, kissing him on the cheek as he tried to hide his blush.

And he was fantastic, as she leaned in and kissed him, after telling him that she was in love with him.

He was fine. Truthfully, completely, beyond fine.

* * *

**So here's an update at what's been going on.**

**I'm incredibly busy with school. I was behind because of illness and family issues, so it's been tough. I haven't had any time to write. This idea was sitting in the back of my mind for the last week, and since it's Friday I decided it was time to write it.**

**Fine is a sort of double meaning. It could be taken as a positive, that you actually are fine, or good. It can also be taken as a negative, which most of us use more frequently. This bounces back and forth between Chase and Zoey, and their feelings, taking place after Goodbye Zoey. I changed it though, so Chase doesn't come back on the night of prom, but rather a few weeks before.**

**I haven't abandoned my other stories. Once I'm done school then I'll write more, I promise. There's also a long weekend coming up here, so hopefully I'll have some time to get some ideas down at the very least.**

**PM or review if you want to talk, or have any comments, suggestions, etc.**

**-Sarah**


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